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The campaign for the local elections on January 23 is in full swing. Door to door, caravans, meetings … Among the candidates in Ziguinchor, Casamance, in the south of the country, three headliners: the outgoing mayor Abdoulaye Baldé, the presidential majority candidate Benoit Sambou, and the opponent Ousmane Sonko , for the opposition coalition Yewwi Askan Wi. The leader of the Pastef party who launched a paving stone in the pond by proposing a local currency for Casamance.
With our correspondent in Dakar, Charlotte Idrac
A local currency, what for? “ It is not a question of replacing the CFA franc, it has nothing to do »Slice Abdou Sané, municipal coordinator of Pastef in Ziguinchor, who emphasizes that local currencies – or complementary -” are part of the scene on a planetary scale ».
« Almost 10,000 forms of payment were identified in 2020 in 198 countries »Affirms for its part the conference of the leaders of the coalition Yewwi Askan Wi. According to its officials, ” in peripheral regions including Casamance, the domestic economy and activities considered informal are not taken into account “, A complementary currency might therefore be a tool for” local development through financial inclusion ».
Proposition « populist “, Denounce the detractors of Ousmane Sonko, even” dangerous for national unity “. ” Monetary absurdity »Added the majority coalition Benno Bokk Yaakaar in a press release. “ A local currency in Casamance! Why not at Saloum or Dialacoto or even better a currency for each of the 553 municipalities while Sonko is there? »Exclaims the communications manager Pape Mahawa Diouf.
A debate that finds a particular echo in Casamance, a region agitated by independence tendencies for four decades now.
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